Missing Athol man believed seen in Fitchburg

Scott Leger, 41, of Athol, has been missing since Dec. 7 and is believed to have been seen in Fitchburg since then. COURTESY PHOTO

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FITCHBURG -- The family of a missing Athol man with ties to Fitchburg is asking for help in his safe return, saying he has been gone for more than a month without any contact.

Scott Leger was first reported missing by his girlfriend, Danielle Marceau, on Dec. 11. She said she last saw Leger the night of Dec. 7 after he left their residence after the pair had fought. She did not elaborate on what they had been fighting about.

Leger is described as being 5 foot 4 inches tall and weighing 150 pounds, with dark brown hair and green eyes. He has facial hair, but he may have shaved it off, according to the Missing Persons of America.

There have been reported sightings of Leger in Fitchburg.

Marceau said Leger left their home on foot, without a cellphone and with $40 in cash in his pocket.

When Leger left, he was wearing a hunter-green jacket with a brown collar, a gray hoodie, a Boston Red Sox baseball cap, blue jeans and brown work boots.

He was supposed to pick up vital medicine at the pharmacy in the days after his disappearance, but never did, according to Marceau. Without that medicine, she said Leger won't act like himself.

"He does have a lot of anxiety and depression," she said. "He can't function without his medicine."

Marceau said the medicine he was taking was not directly related to the anxiety and depression and that he can survive without it, but he would be extremely disoriented.

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"He always had it with him," she said.

She figured Leger would return within a few days after their fight and merely needed time to cool off. But when he didn't return and didn't contact his family, Marceau knew something was wrong.

Marceau officially reported him missing on Dec. 11.

Leger grew up in Fitchburg, and while he hasn't lived there in many years, he still has friends in the city, Marceau said.

Police have conducted multiple searches with police dogs in the woods surrounding her Athol home. While they have not found anything yet, she said they've received some positive tips.

Lt. Kevin Heath, with the Athol Police Department, confirmed that Marceau reported Leger missing, and the department has since conducted five searches in the woods surrounding her house.

"Since then, we've done several searches around the house," Heath said. "We've had three searches with dogs and then two other searches with police and the Fire Department. They were met with negative results. It is believed he may have left the area. I know we did get a couple of unconfirmed sightings in the Fitchburg."

The fact that Leger left with no cellphone and no credit cards makes a search more difficult because those items can be tracked by police electronically.

Also, since his disappearance, the region has been flooded with bitter cold temperatures, which "would be a concern for us," Heath said.

Marceau said she's trying to remain hopeful, but it's becoming harder as the days go by.

"So far, we haven't had much luck, but some of the tips we've gotten say people saw him in Fitchburg," she said, choking back tears. "How do you just disappear? Christmas went by and he never called his sister, nothing. It's just very scary. This is very difficult."

Leger had been helping Marceau raise her 8-year-old son, his nephew, as his own son.

"Scott's been his father figure," Marceau said. "He really misses him a lot. We just want to find out what happened to him. You can't just disappear."

She said she could understand if he decided if he didn't want to be in a relationship with her anymore, but she wants to know he's safe.

"I just want to know he's safe, even if he doesn't want to come home," she said. "That's up to him. We just need to know he's safe and that he's OK. This is completely out of character."

A vigil is planned Sunday at 5 p.m., at the Athol Congregational Church on Chestnut Street.

She said she and Leger's family "just want answers."

"If he's OK and just restarting his life or whatever, he needs to call one of us and let us know that," she said. "We're feeling like something's wrong. This is not like him at all. Like I said, we had been arguing, but he wasn't arguing with his family so he should call them."

Heath said the Police Department is still considering it an active investigation.

"We are pursuing any leads we do get," he said. "We've ruled out any possibility that he went into the wooded area around his house. Again, where he went, I don't know. I wish we did but we don't. If he's hiding out and doesn't want to be found, we might have a more difficult time. We have no reason to suspect foul play."

Anyone with information on Leger's whereabouts should contact the Athol Police Department at 978-249-3232.

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